DHT Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:DHT)

DHT Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DHT) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 16,670 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 111% compared to the typical daily volume of 7,903 call options.

DHT Price Performance

Shares of DHT stock traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $18.16. The stock had a trading volume of 693,795 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,874,063. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $17.61 and its 200 day moving average is $16.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.79 and a beta of -0.11. DHT has a twelve month low of $10.61 and a twelve month high of $20.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

DHT (NYSE:DHT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The shipping company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02. DHT had a return on equity of 27.54% and a net margin of 58.54%.The firm had revenue of $157.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.15 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 134.9% on a year-over-year basis.

DHT Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.64 per share. This is a boost from DHT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. DHT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 124.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DHT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of DHT from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded DHT from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Evercore cut DHT from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $19.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research upped their target price on DHT from $18.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, DHT has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.33.

Institutional Trading of DHT

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in DHT by 74.1% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,315,767 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $78,849,000 after buying an additional 1,836,892 shares during the last quarter. Marex Group plc raised its holdings in shares of DHT by 5,860.2% during the fourth quarter. Marex Group plc now owns 1,084,752 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $13,245,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066,552 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of DHT by 1,072.1% in the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,162,300 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $21,235,000 after acquiring an additional 1,063,134 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in shares of DHT by 706.0% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,077,704 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $11,650,000 after acquiring an additional 943,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of DHT by 168.3% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,186,289 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $21,674,000 after purchasing an additional 744,130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.53% of the company’s stock.

About DHT

DHT Holdings, Inc (NYSE: DHT) is a Bermuda-based independent crude oil tanker company that provides seaborne transportation of crude oil on a worldwide basis. The company’s core business involves the ownership and operation of a modern fleet of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) and Suezmax tankers, which are chartered to oil producers, trading houses and national oil companies. Through spot charters, time-charters and tanker pooling arrangements, DHT connects crude oil exporters with refining hubs in Asia, Europe, North America and other global markets.

Founded in 2005 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange later that year, DHT has grown its presence in the maritime sector by focusing on operational efficiency and disciplined capital management.